


The Power of Hate

by Cosmichumor



Category: Power Rangers
Genre: Comic continuity, Who would win in a fight?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:02:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26259115
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cosmichumor/pseuds/Cosmichumor
Summary: No one who has stood in Drakkon's way has ever been able to stop him. Zedd plans to break that streak with his own two hands. Can Drakkon's ambitions overtake one of the most powerful beings in the galaxy?
Kudos: 1





	The Power of Hate

At one point a boy named Tommy Oliver lived. Rita Repulsa hadn’t known it, but she had killed that boy and gave birth to Drakkon. Rita hadn’t hadn’t realized it until a scimitar had been lodged into her heart. The biggest surprise to Drakkon had been that someone like Rita actually had a heart. 

Drakkon was no fool. He knew that with Rita dead, there was a power vacuum. It was a vacuum he was all too happy to fill. The rangers had been defeated. The world had quickly become his, as had the power of the other rangers. He was a master of all he surveyed.

And it wasn’t enough. 

“Lord Drakkon.” The words of Finster-5 roused him from his musing.

“Yes, my friend?” words that were both unfamiliar to Drakkon and not technically the truth. Finster-5 may have been the closest thing that Drakkon had to a friend, but he was something infinitely more useful: a subject, an extension of his power.

Tommy Oliver? Tommy Oliver had no friends. He might have needed them at some point, but he had grown past that weakness.

“Lord Zedd approaches.” Finster-5 said. “We are preparing for his arrival. We are simply waiting on you.”

Drakkon nodded and stood up. He only knew of Zedd from what Rita had told him. Rita claimed to fear no one, but there had only been two people that the witch had ever spoken of with any measure of respect. The first had been Zordon, her mortal enemy, and the other had been Zedd. Her commander? Her ally? Her rival? Rita’s relationships were almost never complicated, so that alone had made Zedd unique.

Of course, if Rita had truly been as clever as she thought she was, she would have feared Drakkon himself. Would Zedd have the wisdom to do the same? More likely he had come because he sensed a power vacuum now that Drakkon had killed Rita. He probably only saw Drakkon as an usurper that had gotten lucky against Rita. That was fine. Tommy Oliver had been used to being underestimated, and that was something Drakkon had taken advantage of. Let Zedd think Drakkon was just a foolish child. It didn’t matter. He would not allow Zedd to take away what he had wrested by his own two hands. 

And once Zedd was taken care of, there would be an entire galaxy, an entire multiverse ready for him to conquer. 

“Very well.” Drakkon stood up. “Let us prepare. Have you contained the Saba Saber?” 

“It has been properly restrained.” Finster-5 confirmed. “However, I must warn you. Using two power coins already puts an unprecedented amount of stress on your body. The fact that you are able to use that tap into that much of the morphing grid is unprecedented.”

“Unprecedented, yes.” Drakkon agreed. “That is what I am. And so that is why I will be able to take the sword and use it to destroy Zedd.”

“As you say, Lord Drakkon.” There was a hesitancy in his voice. 

“You doubt my power?” Drakkon asked.

“Never your power, my lord.” Finster-5 answered. “However, Lord Zedd is mighty indeed. This may be your most titanic challenge yet.”

“And I have greater challenges to come.” Drakkon responded. “So if I cannot either kill him or make him submit, then I was doomed from the start.”

“As you say, my lord.” Finster-5 had always offered Drakkon sage advice, but knew better than to attempt to dissuade the man once his mind had been made up.

The Saba Saber sat in a containment field that Finster-5 had specifically set up to subdue its free will. It had taken a special combination of science and sorcery, but his genius and knowledge had managed to get Drakkon what he needed. The sword was now another one of Drakkon’s subjects. Another tool for Drakkon to make the universe in his image.

Drakkon grasped the sword by the hilt and felt another surge of power. He grit his teeth, but he did not cry out. He would never show a sign of weakness again, not even to Finster-5. He could feel the extra power surge through him, threaten to tear his muscles apart, but he was Lord Drakkon and his power was undeniable. Finally, the pain subsided and Drakkon was in control of both himself and the saber.

“You said the sword has been disconnected from the Tiger Zord?” Drakkon asked. 

“Yes.” Finster-5 said. “As I’ve said, this much power is incredibly dangerous. With the conflicting powers of the white and green ranger coins inside of you, having to control a zord in addition might be too much strain.”

“Can you connect me to the zord if I need it?” Drakkon asked. “I will be facing Lord Zedd. I can’t afford to have such a powerful piece off the board.”

“The strain could kill y-” Drakkon gave a glance and Finster-5 stopped. “I can reconnect it at your order, my lord.”

“Good.” Drakkon nodded. “Get me a contingent to greet Lord Zedd. As for me… It’s Morphin’ Time.”

****************

Drakkon awaited the landing of Lord Zedd’s ship in full armor, a group of red and black ranger sentinels by his side. The Saba Sword sat at his hilt, silence. It was undeniably a show of strength. Drakkon needed Zedd wary. He needed to make the monster hesitate, to make it that much easier to strike him off-guard.

Zedd’s ship landed slowly, an ugly thing with jutting spikes and blades. It was a wonder how it was able to fly through the atmosphere, but Zedd seemed to be someone who could make the impossible possible through sheer will alone. On that, at least, Drakkon could respect the man. 

The ramp slowly came down and several putties came forward first. They were familiar, but unlike Rita’s they all bore a ‘Z’ emblem on them. Rita and Zedd both seemed to like their branding, it seemed. Zedd followed afterwards, his image did not disappoint.

His body was pure red, with his skeleton jutting out of his body. Drakkon wasn’t sure whether he wore a mask or his face was actually that dark visor, but even Drakkon was taken aback by his exposed brain. He could tell that Zedd was a completely different kind of tyrant. Rita bore an imposing figure, but she seemed to always go for a more regal, somewhat matronly -in its own twisted way- image. Zedd existed to give two things: Fear and pain. Children would cower before him and those with the sense would obey him.

Those with sense and no power, that was. 

“Ah, you must be Rita’s second in command.” Zedd said. “Tommy Oliver, was it?”

“Tommy Oliver died with Rita Repulsa.” Drakkon said, betraying no emotion at hearing his old name. “You are speaking to Lord Drakkon.”

“Very well, Drakkon.” Zedd didn’t bother with the honorific. “Tell me how my dear Rita died.”

“Zordon of Eltar assembled a new group of Power Rangers.” 

“Power Rangers.” Zedd repeated the words as though offal were in his mouth. “That alone could not be the reason for her death.”

“These rangers were… capable. Zordon chose well, pushing Rita desperation. She chose me, and as you can see at the end of it all, she chose better.”

Zedd was silent for a good few moments. Drakkon could not read a single one of those moments. Damn that visor, or his face, whichever it was. It was unreadable. At least Rita had a human face. Rita had never once been shy with her emotions, feeling everything from triumph to devastation to the fullest. It was one of Drakkon’s favorite things about her. He particularly enjoyed the face she had made when he had used the dragon flute to pierce her heart. Zedd, though, Zedd was a complete enigma. He showed only what he wanted to. What he wanted to show was how much power he had over you. 

“Tell me, Drakkon.” Zedd said. “Tell me how my greatest general died.”

I stuck her like a pig. Drakkon suppressed a smirk at the memory, but did not voice the truth. He had practiced this lie for awhile, to the point he almost wished it had been true. “Rita had made her way to Zordon’s lair, having finally found where he hid. She had killed several of the rangers, but the might of the rangers, the zords, and her overconfidence gave the rangers the edge. To give them the final advantage, Zordon finally decided to use his magic to defeat her. The red ranger, Jason I believe his name was, ran her through, but as he struck the blow I managed to get him from behind. With him dead, the rangers scattered and Zordon was vulnerable. It wasn’t long before they all fell. It was then I decided to take on Rita’s mantle. As you can see, I succeeded where she failed. Earth is completely under my control.”

“Under my control.” Zedd’s tone was even, but Drakkon could hear the mild irritation in his voice. Good, anything that threw him off was good. 

“Of course, Lord Zedd.” Drakkon swallowed his pride. What was important was the long game. Rita had slipped up. Zedd would too.

“Your initiative is commendable, Drakkon.” Zedd said. “Never did I think the weaklings of Earth would provide me with such a capable warrior, nor of one with such initiative.”

“Thank you for your kind words, Lord Zedd.” The title was the hardest part for Drakkon to spit out each time. That was his title, and Zedd didn’t have half an ounce of the vision that Drakkon did. Zedd would be satisfied with something as basic as controlling the universe. Drakkon was going higher than any of these small-minded tyrants could imagine.

“Yes, I can see you have the makings of a fine soldier, a great general.” Zedd said, walking closer to Drakkon. “You are cunning, powerful, ruthless, and undeniable in your ambition.” Drakkon and Zedd looked each other in the face, visors betraying no emotion. Zedd was so hard to read that Drakkon almost didn’t have time to block the blast of lightning coming from Zedd’s staff. Drakkon drew the Saba Sword and narrowly caught the lightning, deflecting the arc towards the ground. 

“What you are -not- however, is a good liar.” Zedd pointed forward. “Putties. Kill them.” 

Drakkon’s troops and the putties clashed while Zedd and Drakkon went at each other. To Drakkon’s surprise, these putties were nothing like Rita’s, being significantly hardier, faster, and maybe even more intelligent. His troops struggled against them, even with the limited ranger powers that they had. 

Drakkon was too busy with Zedd to worry about his troops though. Lightning came shooting from Zedd’s staff repeatedly and it was all Drakkon could do to keep from being electrocuted to death on the spot. Drakkon was nothing if not agile, though. He managed to dance between the blows and close in the distance between the two of them. Drakkon’s blade came down and Zedd batted it away with his staff. 

“Do you honestly think you’re clever?” Zedd asked. “That you were the first person to think of betraying me?!” Zedd’s staff discharged lightning from all directions and Drakkon found he could not block or dodge them all, and was sent flying. Drakkon had many experiences in his relatively short life, but electrocution was a new one. Even as his ranger form absorbed most of the damage, he still felt pain course through him twice. Once as he went flying engulfed in lightning, and a second time as he landed on the ground, skidding across the dirt gravel. 

“You got lucky is what you did.” Zedd towered above him, the butt of his staff raised. It came down with the intent to pierce Drakkon’s heart, but he had managed to roll away and kip-up back to his feet, his sword at the ready.

“Luck is something the weak use as an excuse.” Drakkon said before charging once again. 

Zedd caught the blade with his staff again. “It’s something that fools refuse to acknowledge.” Zedd fired off lightning everywhere, but Drakkon was prepared this, instead, going low to the ground, performing a sweep-kick that struck Zedd, sending him, and all the lightning up into the air. Drakkon moved to strike a killing blow, but Zedd threw out more lightning from the ground. Drakkon moved to deflect it as before, but instead of a single bolt, it was a continuous stream that held his blade in place and pushed Drakkon back while Zedd got back to his feet.

“There is an order to this universe.” Zedd said as Drakkon continued to push against the lightning. “I can see it in you and a thousand other young fools who have fallen before. You think you’re a genius for having seen through the cracks. You think you’ve figured out something that old fools like Rita and I haven’t.”

Drakkon couldn’t keep a cocky smile from coming to his face from behind the mask. “Your words, not mine.”

“There is a way the universe works!” Zedd yelled. Finally, the power of his lightning was too much and Drakkon’s sword was pushed out of his hands. Zedd’s staff came forward and slammed into Drakkon’s gut, knocking the wind out of it. “You didn’t figure out a loophole in the universe, you simply spat in its face!” Zedd’s knee followed the staff, crashing into Drakkon’s helmet. Then another kick sent Drakkon flying. He crashed to the ground once again, giving a groan despite himself. “You didn’t win by guile or cleverness. You just hated everyone hard enough to make up for what you lacked everywhere else.”

Zedd stepped forward, towering over Drakkon while he writhed on the ground. “You weren’t smarter than Rita, she was just too foolish to realize what a fool you are, that you would not realize that there is a reason why we do what we do and how we do it. You play with forces that are powerful beyond your comprehension boy, and when they come for you, your hate will pale in comparison to that.”

Drakkon finally rolled away and got up on somewhat wobbly feet, retrieving the white blade as he rose. “It’s gotten me pretty far if you ask me.”

“Yes, well it ends now.” Zedd said. “Let me show you the power of true hate.” More lightning charged from Zedd’s staff and Drakkon could feel the power growing, that it would be more than before.

Drakkon prompted his comm while raising his sword for another defensive pose that was no doubt doomed to fail. “Finster-5, is the Tigerzord ready?”

“The Tigerzord is, yes.” Finster-5’s voice came through. “However, we are not certain how ready you are now, Lord. You’ve barely been able to control it when you’re at full health. If you summoned it now, there’s no telling what kind of damage it would do to your body.”

“Whatever damage it would do is irrelevant compared to what Zedd will do to both of us if he defeats me here.” Drakkon answered. “Summon it.”

“But my Lord-”

“Finster-5, I need Tigerzord power now!” Drakkon yelled.

If Finster-5 made a response, it was drowned out by the lightning and thunder of Zedd’s attack. Blinding white and purple shot towards Drakkon as he struggled to hold back another blow, this one far more powerful than the last, and those last blows had done more injury to Drakkon than he cared to mention. He would succumb soon.

Then he heard the rumbling from the ground. The ground shook hard enough that both Zedd and Drakkon lost their footing. Both managed to keep from falling, but Zedd’s attack went flying towards the sky. 

“What?” cried Zedd, as he saw a chasm behind Drakkon begin to form, and a robotic paw larger than both of the fighters combined reached out of it and shook the ground once more as it hit the ground. The ground shook again with the second paw as the zord showed its full feline face and stared straight at Zedd, letting out a mighty roar. The power of the Tigerzord had been awakened, and Drakkon controlled it. 

“Thank you, friend.” Drakkon said. He had the upper hand in this battle, though he could already feel the strain on his body begin to worsen. 

“You think this toy will save you?” Zedd cried. “Just another display of your arrogance, your refusal to under-” Zedd’s words were cut short as the Tigerzord’s foot came down and landed on him. 

“That was almost disappointing in how anticlimactic it was.” Drakkon said. Those words came far too soon, however, as the Tigerzord began to wobble. Drakkon scrambled towards the zord, using his superhuman abilities to jump into the cockpit, attempting to stabilize the mech. 

“Finster-5!” Drakkon cried as he worked furiously at the controls. “What’s going on?”

“Well… you remember what Rita would do to my former self’s creations?” Finster-5 answered. “Basically that.”

Zedd was growing in size, pushing up from underneath the paw of the Tigerzord. Drakkon pushed down, attempting to truly crush him before he could finish growing. It availed nothing. Zedd’s power and physical strength were growing with his stature. Eventually, Drakkon had to pull the foot away to keep from toppling over. It wasn’t long before Zedd matched the Tigerzord’s size.

“Hmm.” Drakkon said. “This could be a problem.”

Zedd’s staff came swinging towards the Tigerzord, glowing with power. “Shields up!” Drakkon cried as the staff collided against an invisible wall. “Attack now!”

The Tigerzord let out a roar and countless missiles fired from numerous hidden panels across the zord’s legs, all honing in on Zedd. Zedd thrust his staff forward, lightning zapped forward, striking most of the down. There were too many for Zedd to completely deflect, and a number of them did end up hitting him full force, striking him back. 

As Zedd staggered, Drakkon drove the zord forward, pouncing on Zedd. Zedd threw his staff aside and caught the zord by it’s mechanical paws, ready to rip them off. 

“An impressive toy, no doubt, boy.” Zedd said as his grip tightened on the zord. “But I am not Rita. I am not dependent on toys for my power. I. AM. POWER!”

Drakkon heard a crunching sound as Zedd’s grip crushed the paws of the Tigerzord. Even with this power, Zedd was pushing him back. He needed to get desperate “Finster-5, what is the most powerful weapon on this?”

“It does have an energy beam with power equivalent to one of Earth’s nuclear weapons.” Finster-5’s voice came. “But sir, the devastation would kill all our men too and-”

“All power to the energy beam then!” Drakkon yelled. The groaning and screeching of metal could be heard as Zedd continued to slowly pull Drakkon’s would-be trump card apart.

“Yes, sir.” Finster-5 replied. Drakkon did not miss the resignation in his voice.

The tigerord’s mechanical maw opened and bright white energy gathered in inside as Zedd pulled the machine apart. After three heart-pounding seconds, the beam shot forward, hitting Zedd right in the chest, driving him back. Zedd refused to relinquish his grip on the tigerzord as the beam pushed him back, until finally, the front legs of the zord ripped off and Zedd’s giant form was sent flying back.

As the zord fell, Drakkon searched for the way to get out. He pushed the emergency eject button, that availed nothing. It seemed that the beam had taken even that much energy from the machine. Drakkon grabbed his Saba Sword and slammed against the cockpit, until it finally shattered. He jumped out, still dozens of meters above ground. 

This was going to hurt. He did everything he could to cushion the fall, rolling onto the ground, but even with the power of two energy coins, Drakkon could feel bones breaking and his armor shattering. Behind him, he saw the tigerzord fall to ground, the impact making a deafening sound and sending dust and smoke everywhere. 

“Finster-5, scan for life signs.” Drakkon said, getting to his feet. “Is Zedd still out there?”

As if summoned, lightning struck Drakkon right in the chest, sending him back to the ground. 

“Yes.” Zedd’s voice said. “He is.”

As the smoke cleared, Zedd appeared, once again the size of a human being. He was also in bad shape though, one of his arms hanging limply, and his chest caked with blood and bruises. 

“This is what your hate gets you?” Zedd asked. “A failed machine and a devastated planet? Only to fall before me after all? Do you see what I mean? Your hate is too small to hope to take me on.”

Drakkon gritted his teeth and his grip on his sword tightened. “You have no idea about my hate.” Drakkon wasn’t about to die here, not after all this. He wasn’t going to let his victories, the deaths be in vain, and he wouldn’t let Zedd control him, not like how every other person in his life had tried to. He would prevail over every monster that faced him, until the only monster left standing was him. Saba swung forward as Zedd. “You have no idea about my pain!”

Lightning crackled from Zedd’s staff as their weapons clashed, but no lightning came forth. Zedd was weakening, Drakkon knew. However, so was he. He could feel the strain of the morpher on his body, feel his knees buckle. He needed to end this soon. 

“I know all about your hate, boy.” Zedd said. “The hatred of a teenager with an attitude is not enough to compare to one has decimated galaxies. Your hate is nothing but youth and luck!”

Drakkon was running out of options. He stepped back as Zedd pushed forward, his inhuman strength overtaking Drakkon’s waning power. There was only one thing Drakkon could do.

He dropped his sword and lunged forward. 

The ornate Z on top of the staff pierced his chestguard and moved right into his abdomen, narrowly missing his heart. The emblem seemed anything but a proper or efficient weapon, but Drakkon couldn’t deny the pain that went through his body as it lodged itself in, millions of volts now coursing through his body. Pain was Zedd’s specialty.

But not Drakkon’s. Drakkon’s specialty was conquest. And any conqueror knew that sacrifice was necessary for victory.

“What?” Zedd cried, not expecting to land such a decisive blow. Too late, he realized that he weapon had been compromised, while Drakkon’s was completely free. Saba raised forward and then struck downward, slicing Zedd’s throat. For good measure, he then plunged Saba into Zedd’s heart. Zedd would have cried in agony in that terrifying voice of his, but as it was he could only let out a weak gurgle.

“How?” Zedd rasped as he fell to his knees. “What could you possibly hate enough to defeat me?”

Drakkon demorphed, though Zedd’s staff still remained lodged in his chest. He dropped to his knees, partially from exhaustion, but mostly so he could look Zedd right in his ugly face.

“Isn’t it obvious?” he whispered, admitting to the lord of galaxies something that up until now he had not even admitted to myself. “The one thing no one could ever hate more than me.”

“And that is?” Zedd said, indulging in morbid curiosity for his last few moments of life. 

The words came out like steaming black tar. “Myself.”

“Ah.” Zedd said, and then he said nothing more. The most powerful tyrant in the galaxy lay still, having been killed by a young upstart, a teenager with an attitude. There was no one in the universe who could stand up against him now.

It might have brought someone else peace, but not Drakkon. He knew better. There was an entire multiverse of rangers out there. Opponents and powers he would need to conquer and control if he were ever to reach his ultimate goal.

The Morphing Grid.

“Finster-5.” Drakkon opened his comm. “Get a med team for me over here. Then get started on the dimensional transporter. There’s still work to be done.”

**Author's Note:**

> As a lifelong Power Rangers fan, I got really into the current Boom Studios comic series, which turned Tommy from a bland role model into a genuinely interesting character. That only became moreso when Drakkon was introduced. A dark reflection of Tommy, a Tommy that turned evil could have been a dull and uninteresting flipside character ended up being an examination of the very idea of a heroism and both a martyr and a god complex. Drakkon ended up being multifaceted enough that he ended up being an action figure I wanted to play with, and in the comics my first question was 'What happened to Zedd in Drakkon's dimension?' This is an attempt to answer that question and hopefully explore Drakkon as a character a little more while also having a good deal of ranger action.
> 
> In any case, I hope you enjoyed it apologize if there are any continuity errors or anything of that sort. This is mostly a mental exercise on my own behalf and not an attempt to perfectly fit into continuity.


End file.
